Men who work too much, and the women who love them

A recent conversation got me thinking about people whose spouses work too much. Whether your honey has a life-long love affair with their job, or a temporary fling with workaholism, the un-busy partner often feels neglected, and in competition against their spouse’s cell phone.

Some relationships can survive overworked spouses and others cannot. While it may seem that the wife of a busy husband is being demanding, by nagging him for attention, (often our stereotype), the opposite is also true. The super-busy partner is really asking the family for a lot: They have to set aside their needs, while he continues to receive the family’s understanding, patience, and flexibility.

It is only a fair expectation then that the busy spouse recognize their family’s sacrifice often, sincerely, and attempt to change the overall pattern ASAP.

Bottom line: Overtly acknowledging the ways in which your stressful or demanding work affects your spouse and family, will go a long way in addressing difficult feelings. Also, please remember that, as pointed out by the article, either gender can be affected by the issue to too much work.